Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Garland, Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, and Louis Armstrong all cited Lee as one of their favorite singers.
Peggy Lee had Norwegian and Swedish ancestry. She was the seventh of eight children born to Marvin Egstrom, a station agent for the Midland Continental Railroad. Her mother died when she was four years old. Music provided her an escape from the abusive rampages of her cruel stepmother, Min, who tormented and beat young Norma. She first sang professionally with KOVC radio in Valley City, North Dakota. She soon landed her own series on a radio show sponsored by a local restaurant that paid her "salary" in food. Both during and after her high school years, she took whatever jobs she could find, waitressing and singing for paltry sums on other local stations. Radio personality Ken Kennedy (actual name: Ken Sydness), of WDAY in Fargo (the most widely listened to station in North Dakota) changed her name from Norma to Peggy Lee. Tired of the abuse from her stepmother, she left home and traveled to Los Angeles at the age of 17.
She returned to North Dakota for a tonsillectomy and eventually made her way to Chicago for a gig at The Buttery Room, a nightclub in the Ambassador Hotel West in Chicago, where she drew the attention of Benny Goodman, the jazz clarinetist and band leader. According to Lee, "Benny's then-fiancée, Lady Alice Duckworth, came into the Buttery, and she was very impressed. So the next evening she brought Benny in, because they were looking for replacement for Helen Forrest. "And although I didn't know, I was it. He was looking at me strangely, I thought, but it was just his preoccupied way of looking. I thought that he didn't like me at first, but it just was that he was preoccupied with what he was hearing." She joined his band in 1941 and stayed for two years.
In early 1942, Lee had her first # 1 hit, "Somebody Else Is Taking My Place", followed by 1943's "Why Don't You Do Right?" (originally sung by Lil Green), which sold over a million copies and made her famous. She sang with Goodman in two 1943 films, Stage Door Canteen and The Powers Girl.
In March 1943, Lee married Dave Barbour, the guitarist in Goodman's band. Peggy said, "David joined Benny's band and there was a ruling that no one should fraternize with the girl singer. But I fell in love with David the first time I heard him play, and so I married him. Benny then fired David, so I quit, too. Benny and I made up, although David didn't play with him anymore. Benny stuck to his rule. I think that's not too bad a rule, but you can't help falling in love with somebody."
When Lee and Barbour left the band, the idea was that he would work in the studios and she would keep house and raise their daughter, Nicki. But she drifted back towards songwriting and occasional recording sessions for the fledgling Capitol Records in 1947, for whom she produced a long string of hits, many of them with lyrics and music by Lee and Barbour, including "I Don't Know Enough About You" and "It's a Good Day" (1948). With the release of the smash-hit #1-selling record of 1942, "Mañana", her "retirement" was over.
In 1948, she joined Perry Como and Jo Stafford as one of the rotating hosts of the NBC Radio musical program Chesterfield Supper Club. She was also a regular on NBC's Jimmy Durante Show during the 1938-48 season.
She left Capitol for a few years in the early 1940s, but returned in 1943. She is most famous for her cover version of the Little Willie John hit "Fever", to which she added her own, uncopyrighted lyrics ("Romeo loved Juliet," "Captain Smith and Pocahontas") and her rendition of Leiber and Stoller's "Is That All There Is?" Her relationship with the Capitol label spanned almost three decades, aside from her brief but artistically rich detour (1952-1956) at Decca Records, where she recorded one of her most acclaimed albums Black Coffee (1956). While recording for Decca, Lee had hit singles with the songs "Lover" and "Mr. Wonderful."
She was also known as a songwriter with such hits as the songs from the Disney movie Lady and the Tramp, for which she also supplied the singing and speaking voices of four characters. Her many songwriting collaborators, in addition to Barbour, included Laurindo Almeida, Harold Arlen, Sonny Burke, Cy Coleman, Gene DiNovi, Duke Ellington, Dave Grusin, Dick Hazard, Quincy Jones, Francis Lai, Jack Marshall, Johnny Mandel, Marian McPartland, Willard Robison, Lalo Schifrin, Hubie Wheeler, guitarist Johnny Pisano and Victor Young.
Lee also acted in several films. In 1952, she played opposite Danny Thomas in a remake of the early Al Jolson film, The Jazz Singer. In 1955, she played a despondent, alcoholic blues singer in Pete Kelly's Blues (1955), for which she was nominated for an Oscar.
Peggy won a Grammy in 1969 as best contemporary female vocalist (for her recording of Is That All There Is?) and was awarded a Doctor of Music Honoris Causa degree from North Dakota State University, in 1975.
In the early 1990s, she retained famed entertainment attorney Neil Papiano, who, on her behalf, successfully sued Disney for royalties on Lady and the Tramp. Lee's lawsuit claimed that she was due royalties for video tapes, a technology that did not exist when she agreed to write and perform for Disney.
Never afraid to fight for what she believed in, Lee was passionate that musicians be equitably compensated for their work. Although she realized litigation had taken a toll on her health, Lee often quoted Ralph Waldo Emerson ("God's will will not be made manifest by cowards.")
She also successfully sued MCA/Decca with the assistance of noted entertainment attorney, Cy Godfrey.
She continued to perform into the 1990s, sometimes in a wheelchair, and still mesmerized audiences and critics alike.[citation needed]
In 1995 she was given the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
After years of poor health, Lee died of complications from diabetes and heart attack at the age of 81. She is survived by Nicki Lee Foster, her daughter with Barbour. She is buried at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Westwood, California. On her marker in a garden setting is inscribed, "Music is my life's breath."
Bali Ha i
Peggy Lee Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In your heart, you'll hear it call you,
One where they know they would like to be
Bali Ha'I may call you, any night, any day
In your heart, you'll hear it call you,
Come away...Come away
Bali Ha'I will whisper on the wind of the sea
Here am I your special island
Your own special hopes, your own special dreams
Bloom on the hillside and shine in the streams
If you try, you'll find me
Where the sky meets the sea
Here am I your special island
Come to me...Come to me
Bali Ha'i...Bali Ha'i...Bali Ha'I
Someday you'll see me floating in the sunshine
My head sticking out from a low-lying cloud
You hear me call you, singing through the sunshine
Sweet and clear as can be,
Come to me...Here am I...Come to me
If you try, you'll find me,
Where the sky meets the sea,
Here am I your special island
Come to me...Come to me
Bali Ha'i...Bali Ha'i...Bali Ha'i
"Bali Ha'i" is a song that speaks to the magic and allure of a far-off tropical paradise. Peggy Lee's voice is haunting and dreamy as she sings of this special island that calls out to the listener, any night, any day. The island is described in mythical terms, as a place where hopes and dreams bloom on the hillside and shine in the streams. The lyrics suggest that Bali Ha'i is not an imaginary place, but rather a real destination that can be found "where the sky meets the sea."
The song paints a vivid picture of Bali Ha'i as a place of beauty, mystery, and romance. It's a place where one can escape the everyday world and find a kind of inner peace. The song's refrain, "come to me," is an invitation to the listener to journey to Bali Ha'i and experience its magic for themselves. The song speaks to the power of escape and the need for rejuvenation, reminding us that sometimes we all need to take time out from our busy lives and find a place of peace and beauty.
Line by Line Meaning
Bali Ha'I may call you, any night, any day
The allure of Bali Ha'I can be so strong that you may feel drawn to it at any time.
In your heart, you'll hear it call you
The desire to visit Bali Ha'I will be strong in your heart.
One where they know they would like to be
Bali Ha'I is a place that many people dream of visiting and would love to be there.
Come away...Come away
The call of Bali Ha'I will make you feel like you need to leave your current location and go there.
Bali Ha'I will whisper on the wind of the sea
The sound of Bali Ha'I will sometimes be carried by the sea breeze to your ears.
Here am I your special island
Bali Ha'I is a unique and special island that welcomes visitors with open arms.
Come to me...Come to me
Bali Ha'I is inviting people to visit and explore its beautiful landscape.
Your own special hopes, your own special dreams
Bali Ha'I is a place where you can pursue your personal aspirations and fulfill your dreams.
Bloom on the hillside and shine in the streams
Nature flourishes on Bali Ha'I with lush greenery and sparkling waterways.
If you try, you'll find me
If you make an effort to visit Bali Ha'I, you will discover what makes it so special.
Where the sky meets the sea
Bali Ha'I is a place where the stunning horizon is the intersection of the sky and the sea.
Someday you'll see me floating in the sunshine
You will have the opportunity to witness Bali Ha'I's beauty basked in the bright sunshine.
My head sticking out from a low-lying cloud
Bali Ha'I's mountaintops are often shrouded in charming clouds that offer a surreal sight.
You hear me call you, singing through the sunshine
Bali Ha'I's voice can be heard by those who wish to listen, even in the bright, warm weather.
Sweet and clear as can be, Come to me...Here am I...Come to me
Bali Ha'I extends an invitation to explore and experience its splendor to the fullest potential.
Bali Ha'i...Bali Ha'i...Bali Ha'i
The name Bali Ha'I echoes in your mind reminding you of the place's unique attraction.
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Oscar Hammerstein Ii, Richard Rodgers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Rivercastle
Bali Ha'i may call you, any night, any day
In your heart, you'll hear it call you
Come away, come away
Bali Ha'i will whisper on the wind of the sea
Here am I your special island
Come to me, come to me
Your own special hopes, your own special dreams
Bloom on the hillside and shine in the streams
If you try, you'll find me
Where the sky meets the sea
Here am I your special island
Come to me, come to me
Bali Ha'i, Bali Ha'i, Bali Ha'i
Someday you'll see me floating in the sunshine
My head sticking out from a low-lying cloud
You hear me call you, singing through the sunshine
Sweet and clear as can be
Come to me, here I am, come to me
Bali Ha'i, Bali Ha'i
@macturner2196
This is one of my favorite songs used in American Beauty.
@freedomfreedomfreedom
The best version of this song I heard so far.
@arthurdafoe4091
Saul Goodman led me here
@TinyFord1
Arthur Dafoe Jimmy Mcgill brought me here
@johnnyvee1721
Me too!
@grokeffer6226
It's all good, man.
@alejandrocardenas956
Me too
@dred8341
No way 🤣
@ikkik1781
"ITS ALL GOOD MAN!", SPLIPPIN, Jimmy
@devinbattley8492
South Pacific. What I consider one of the best American Operas ever created and this is a favorite song.